by Anthony Barksdale, Baltimore City Police Department Deputy Commissioner (retired)
As policing across the United States is being challenged by terms like “Reimagine Policing” and “#Defund,” minority communities in cities like New York, Baltimore, DC, Philadelphia are seeing significant increases in violent crime that I and many others thought would never be revisited in our lifetimes.
As Baltimore City Deputy Commissioner I led a police department that contributed to a historic drop in violence. Homicides fell almost 20 percent in 2007 and reached a historic low of 196 in 2011, the first time the city had fewer than 200 annual homicides in more than 40 years. At the same time, the Baltimore Police moved away from the “zero tolerance” approach, and the number of arrests dropped in sync with decreasing violence. It was called a “Baltimore miracle” as low crime and low arrests happened at the same time.
It was called a “Baltimore miracle” as low crime and low arrests happened at the same time.
The key was a relentless focus on repeat violent offenders and using Compstat to identify crime trends and hold police squads accountable for results and expenditures.
The vast majority of victims of violence in Baltimore and other cities are Black and Brown children, women, and men. While I understand the sentiment behind those who wish to move away from policing, we need to maintain focus on the suffering, and loss happening right now in these neighborhoods. Police play a vital role in protecting the vulnerable within them.
It is incumbent that our elected officials select police leadership who have the experience to question the number and type of arrests, and whether these arrests further investigations of violent offenders to lead to convictions of the shooters and killers who are terrorizing the community.
The relationship between the police and prosecutors is an important one. Police need partners. There is also a movement among “progressive” prosecutors to decline to present charges in lower level felony and misdemeanor crimes. In cities dealing with increasing violence, it is vital that those inflicting violence understand that there will be consequences. While I am opposed to mass- and quota-driven arrests, I am concerned that this removes a leveraging tool that aids police in pursuit of violent offenders.
I appreciate the need for holistic solutions for societal problems; it is necessary for communities to have housing, jobs and schools. My overarching concern is that we allow police to play our part in keeping communities safe from those who would hurt, maim, or kill the most vulnerable among us. And when police are the problem, I am committed to holding them accountable whether that is through removal or prosecution—in fact, its vital for the mission to protect and serve.
I believe in using data to make crime fighting decisions. The data is screaming for more to be done across the United States to keep black and brown communities safe. We must have the courage to confront the daily violence Black and Brown citizens are facing with targeted and proactive engagement against the shooters and killers. We cannot afford to wait, we must turn this around.
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Born and raised in Baltimore, Anthony (“Tony”) Barksdale is known as the architect of “focused proactive enforcement,” which is data-focused, cost-effective approach to fighting crime. As the youngest Deputy Commissioner in Baltimore’s history, Barksdale oversaw all operations and a staff of more than 2,000 patrol officers, detectives, and commanders. After retiring from the department in 2013, Barksdale has worked in senior management in the security field while advocating for changes in policing.
